Fitness questions and answers for February 10, 2004

Form & Fitness Q & A

Got a question about fitness, training, recovery from injury or a related subject? Drop us a line at fitness@cyclingnews.com. Please include as much information about yourself as possible, including your age, sex, and type of racing or riding.

Carrie Cheadle, MA (www.carriecheadle.com) is a Sports Psychology consultant who has dedicated her career to helping athletes of all ages and abilities perform to their potential. Carrie specialises in working with cyclists, in disciplines ranging from track racing to mountain biking. She holds a bachelors degree in Psychology from Sonoma State University as well as a masters degree in Sport Psychology from John F. Kennedy University.

Kelby Bethards, MD received a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Iowa State University (1994) before obtaining an M.D. from the University of Iowa College of Medicine in 2000. Has been a racing cyclist 'on and off' for 20 years, and when time allows, he races Cat 3 and 35+. He is a team physician for two local Ft Collins, CO, teams, and currently works Family Practice in multiple settings: rural, urgent care, inpatient and the like.

Fiona Lockhart (www.trainright.com) is a USA Cycling Expert Coach, and holds certifications from USA Weightlifting (Sports Performance Coach), the National Strength and Conditioning Association (Certified Strength and Conditioning Coach), and the National Academy for Sports Nutrition (Primary Sports Nutritionist). She is the Sports Science Editor for Carmichael Training Systems, and has been working in the strength and conditioning and endurance sports fields for over 10 years; she's also a competitive mountain biker.

David Fleckenstein, MPT (www.physiopt.com) is a physical therapist practicing in Boise, ID. His clients have included World and U.S. champions, Olympic athletes and numerous professional athletes. He received his B.S. in Biology/Genetics from Penn State and his Master's degree in Physical Therapy from Emory University. He specializes in manual medicine treatment and specific retraining of spine and joint stabilization musculature. He is a former Cat I road racer and Expert mountain biker.

Since 1986 Steve Hogg (www.cyclefitcentre.com) has owned and operated Pedal Pushers, a cycle shop specialising in rider positioning and custom bicycles. In that time he has positioned riders from all cycling disciplines and of all levels of ability with every concievable cycling problem.They include World and National champions at one end of the performance spectrum to amputees and people with disabilities at the other end.

Pamela Hinton has a bachelor's degree in Molecular Biology and a doctoral degree in Nutritional Sciences, both from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She did postdoctoral training at Cornell University and is now an assistant professor of Nutritional Sciences at the University of Missouri-Columbia where she studies the effects of iron deficiency on adaptations to endurance training and the consequences of exercise-associated changes in menstrual function on bone health.

Steve Owens (www.coloradopremiertraining.com) is a USA Cycling certified coach, exercise physiologist and owner of Colorado Premier Training. Steve has worked with both the United States Olympic Committee and Guatemalan Olympic Committee as an Exercise Physiologist. He holds a B.S. in Exercise & Sports Science and currently works with multiple national champions, professionals and World Cup level cyclists.

Richard Stern (www.cyclecoach.com) is Head Coach of Richard Stern Training, a Level 3 Coach with the Association of British Cycling Coaches, a Sports Scientist, and a writer. He has been professionally coaching cyclists and triathletes since 1998 at all levels from professional to recreational. He is a leading expert in coaching with power output and all power meters. Richard has been a competitive cyclist for 20 years

Andy Bloomer (www.cyclecoach.com) is an Associate Coach and sport scientist with Richard Stern Training. He is a member of the Association of British Cycling Coaches (ABCC) and a member of the British Association of Sport and Exercise Sciences (BASES). In his role as Exercise Physiologist at Staffordshire University Sports Performance Centre, he has conducted physiological testing and offered training and coaching advice to athletes from all sports for the past 4 years. Andy has been a competitive cyclist for many years.

What you do about this question depends on how serious you are. Assuming you don't have the money for an altitude tent but that you are a serious bike racer with freedom to travel, I'd suggest going somewhere that you can sleep at over 6000 feet elevation for about three weeks, return home for one week, and then return to the venue one week in advance of the event. This would make a huge difference in your ability to race at altitude. Remember that it is spending time breathing at altitude and not training at altitude that is important.

I curiously read most of the "strength and cycling" articles and found the viewpoint of Ric Stern quite plausible. But everytime I climbed so far (up to about 1000mtrs.) it wasn't the heart or lung which made my cry, but the legs. I really felt that with more strengh, I could climb more easily. I should add, that I did weight training during the last 4 years, but not too intense. Is this an aspect forgotten in the articles so far, or am I totally fooled by my body?

I'm a 38 year old Vet-Expert/Master cyclist living in Victoria, British Columbia. After having a respectable 2003 season as a Vet on the roads and mtb I recently fractured my fibula while doing some off-season training (slipped/fell on some ice while running on local trails). The hospital x-ray showed a clear spiral fracture about 3-4cm long at the top of the bone, just below my knee. Some swelling is visible but it's generally just a dull, aching pain - I can only put weight on it for short periods of time.

The doctor opted to not cast the leg and said to rely on my "pain tolerance" as a guide as to what type of activities I try to do and how soon I attempt them, although he did say do very little for the next 3 weeks. This seems like good advice but I'm also a bit concerned that I might push too hard too soon. How long does it usually take for a fibula injury like this to heal? Would riding rollers/stationary bike be reasonable to attempt in 2-3 weeks, with light resistance if there's no pain? Do you recommend swimming or other activities for cyclists with similar leg injuries?

While it is always a most unfortunate thing to have a fracture, you have chosen the right bone to fracture. The fibula is essentially a non-weight bearing bone and can tolerate a fair amount of motion without adverse effects. Without going to Tyler-like thresholds, your physician is exactly appropriate in stating that you can do what you want within reasonable pain limits. I think that allowing 2-3 weeks for the initial inflammation to calm and some bone callous formation to occur is a great idea (trying to push at that time will only set you back) and then I feel that you could be fairly aggressive with rollers or the turbo trainer. I would recommend waiting 6 weeks until initiating strength training. Swimming is fine, and water jogging with a vest (not touching the bottom) is an additional excellent workout, and almost as exciting as riding rollers staring at a white wall....

There is value to training at all heart rates at some point, including below the low limit. The majority of your training time should be between 60 and 80% of your own personal maximum heart rate, which may or may not be close to the preset zone. Harder riding is appropriate a couple of days per week in the month or two before the racing season. Once racing starts, I'd suggest doing very little time above 80% of maximum except in the races.

Please forgive the long delay. It's been a hectic last month for me. Sprinting and fast acceleration is a difficult physiological attribute to aquire for someone who doesn't have it naturally ie.( a high percentage of fast twitch muscle fibres). You can improve your ability though by focussing on efforts with high power in short bursts. You can do this in weight training but it can be a little dangerous for the inexperienced that try to do accelerated squats for example.

I have recently been wearing a heart rate monitor every now and then, and have noticed that I can't get my heart rate very high. The highest I can get it is around 170, and 160 is all I can sustain. Does this mean I have a low max heart rate, or is my heart just much stronger than my legs? When I get to that heart rate my legs heart but I am not breathing too hard. If it helps, I am 14 and my resting heart rate is 36-38.

For the last 10 weeks I've been doing some serious mileage, about 20 hours a week. Now I want to incorporate some Lactate Threshold Intervals and Vo2 Max intervals into my training. Could you suggest the best length and repetitions for these specific intervals. Also, will it have any adverse effect if I continue to do rides of 5+ hours at low intensity. I'd actually like to increase my weekly riding to about 25 hours and still do speed work in between. Here is a brief look at what a typical build week would look like: